Rettko, an attorney who represents three sheriff's captains who recently won a civil service hearing against Clarke, said the latest allegations of how Clarke runs his staff are unheard of.

"When you bypass those rules and play favorites, that's a real problem for public safety because you're putting the community at risk," Rettko said.

Clarke refused to answer specific questions about the civil service rules but said in a statement that he promoted Holton off a list provided by the county's Human Resource Department.

"Is someone suggesting that he should be excluded from the process because he's related to me? Who, specifically, is claiming that they are more qualified? Let's compare qualifications," Clarke said in the statement.